Public Works Commissioner Darryl Smalls Prepares to Present Budget; 
Detail Current and Future Projects

Public Works Commissioner Darryl Smalls will appear before the Virgin Islands Legislature Thursday to share information about current and planned construction projects across the Territory, and present his Department's fiscal year 2011 budget.

In challenging economic times, the Public Works Department has continued to meet its mandate to design, construct, and maintain government buildings, public roads and highways; manage and maintain public burial sites, including veterans’ cemeteries; provide convenient transportation services; assist in the protection and preservation of private and government property in natural disasters; and complete the construction and maintenance of parking areas, lots and garages. 

Smalls will tell lawmakers all Public Works employees remain committed to efficient facility maintenance, infrastructure management and transportation services. That work, done in collaboration with other government departments and federal agencies, ensures Virgin Islands residents and visitors can enjoy a clean, healthy and environmentally safe community. 

To achieve these vital public services, Public Works is requesting $25,914,687 for its 2011 budget, a decrease of 7.83 percent from fiscal year 2010. Public Works will also receive $225,000 from the St. John Capital Improvement Fund to assist with projects on St. John, and $300,000 from the Tourism Revolving Fund to assist with Carnival Festivities across the Territory. Smalls anticipates his department will also receive $18,990,577 in federal funds.

Public Works has undertaken the important task of administering American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds received by the territory.

Personnel costs represent 33 percent of the Department's total operating budget. Currently, Public Works has a workforce of 314 Employees, 97 of which are VITRAN employees paid out of VITRAN subsidy. Smalls is working to fill 31 vacancies, mainly requiring skilled, technical professionals.

The Department's Capital Improvement Program office has oversight responsibility for 23 active projects. Those include the demolition of the former Toro Building to make way for the Department of Justice's St. Croix Headquarters—a $16 million project in the final stages of design.

On St. Thomas, Public Works is working with the Department of Planning and Natural Resources to initiate construction of a new library and record center for the identification, preservation and promotion of the Territory's historical and public records. The $14.6 million project is more than three quarters complete.

Public Works is currently overseeing several construction projects in Virgin Islands schools, including a new school on St. John funded by a Department of Interior grant, for which construction will begin by the end of this year. Major construction is also being done at Cancryn Junior High School and St. Croix's Central High School.

The department's Division of Transportation manages the Territory's public transportation, transit system, public parking lots and traffic control devices. In 2009, the Division used Federal Transit Administration grants accumulated over a period of three years to purchase 12 medium duty buses specifically manufactured to meet the Territory’s terrain and driving conditions. VITRAN is procuring additional vehicles to replace an aging fleet, and will implement new services and routes accordingly.

More than 40 bus shelters and bus stop signs are in various phases of construction or planning thanks to $1.284 million in federal stimulus (ARRA) funds obtained in 2009. The stimulus money is also funding a new St. Croix administration and maintenance facility.

Also with federal funds, Public Works is in the process of purchasing two ferry boats for the St. John franchise operators, augmenting the current ferry fleet.

A $964,955 energy grant awarded this year will pay for the conversion of traffic lights and other luminaries to LED bulbs, and solar light at bus shelters and on the Christiansted Boardwalk. Those upgrades save 75 percent in energy costs at converted traffic intersections.

A multi-modal transportation plan study, launched in 2009, is 85 percent complete. Through meetings with community representatives and objective traffic count date, the study has identified transportation projects for the next two decades.

Public Works crews are currently working to improve deteriorated roads, incorporate drainage improvements, and perform summer maintenance at schools. Many of these projects have recently been completed, and many more are slated for construction within the following months. Public Works will also help replace the utility infrastructure belonging to the Water and Power Authority, Innovative Communications and Waste Management.

Over the next couple months, Public Works engineers and crews will undertake major roadway repairs. Among them is the Claude A. Beenie Benjamin Memorial Drive (Rt. 79) From Queen Mary Intersection at Sunny Isles North to Estate Queens Quarter, a vital roadway for emergency vehicles coming from Juan Luis Hospital. 

The Office of Highway Engineering is managing several federally funded projects, including the Long Bay Road Project and Red Hook Sidewalk Improvements on St. Thomas, the Queen Mary East Project and Christiansted Bypass on St. Croix, and several other road drainage, paving, reconstruction projects.

The Department's Division of Operations crews have applied 409 tons of asphalt to roads on St. Croix, 417 tons of asphalt on St. Thomas and 160 tons on St. John.

At the present date, Public Works has spent roughly 20 percent of federal stimulus funds awarded to the Territory, which is in line with the national target goal. The Department continues to meet the challenge of implementing ARRA contracts, getting contractors out to work sites, and fulfilling reporting deadlines. 

Darryl Smalls will assure legislators that with the requested 2011 budget, the Department of Public Works will continue building a brighter future for the Virgin Islands.

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